DETROIT—GM will halt production at its Detroit Hamtramck assembly plant, where it builds the Chevrolet Volt, for four weeks for retooling starting in mid-September.
WINDSOR, ON—CAW members at Chrysler’s assembly plant here have voted almost unanimously in support of a strike as a way to back workers’ contact demands. The union’s expires in mid-September.
DETROIT—For automakers, one of the biggest headaches posed by infotainment systems is instant obsolescence. With its three- to five-year product cycles, the auto industry simply can’t keep up with the short product cycles of smart phone makers. New applications produced for smart phones often aren’t compatible with the dated software and hardware found in autos.
SEOUL, South Korea—South Korean scientists have developed a new material for rechargeable lithium-ion batteries that could reduce charging time for electric vehicles.